SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Attorney Advertising. National environmental litigation firm Keller
Rohrback L.L.P. is investigating potential claims on behalf of
residents and businesses in Portland affected by high levels of airborne
toxins from art glass manufacturers.

This month, Oregon state regulators first disclosed that the air in part
of southeast Portland has tested for extremely high levels of arsenic
and cadmium, both byproducts of glass smelting.

According to the Oregon
Health Authority, persistent exposure to high concentrations of
arsenic can cause skin, lung, or bladder cancer, and the health effects
for cadmium exposure include lung cancer and kidney damage.

Regulators have identified Bullseye
Glass Co. as the source of high levels of arsenic and cadmium in the
part of southeast Portland just south of Southeast 22nd Avenue and
Powell Boulevard. A second, similar hotspot in northeast Portland has
been attributed to a facility owned by Uroboros
Glass, though Uroboros has said that it has not used arsenic in its
products for over 20 years.

According to media
reports, neither company uses “baghouse” pollution control devices
to capture emissions from their glass melt furnaces, even though they
use those devices in other parts of their operations.

“It’s unconscionable that these companies apparently put Portlanders at
unnecessary risk, and that regulators have not done enough to protect
the public,” said Daniel
Mensher, an attorney at Keller Rohrback and former Clinical
Professor and Staff Attorney at Earthrise Law Center, the environmental
law clinic at Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland. Joining Mr. Mensher
in Keller Rohrback’s investigation is Matthew
Preusch, Keller Rohrback attorney and former environmental reporter
at The Oregonian in Portland.

Attorneys in Keller Rohrback’s Complex Litigation Group have a long
history of successfully representing individuals and class members in a
wide range of important environmental litigation. Whether working for
victims of oil spills, communities exposed to toxic materials, or people
who purchased contaminated or defective products, Keller Rohrback’s team
of experienced environmental litigators have helped to protect people
and the environment across the country. For example, Keller Rohrback
represented fishermen, landowners, and businesses located in Prince
William Sound in their action against Exxon to recover damages caused by
the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill. A federal jury awarded a $5 billion judgment
in favor of Keller Rohrback clients.

Attorney Advertising. Case results depend on a variety of factors unique
to each case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result
in any future case.